Bro..beautiful indeed... I am glad to find good hearted people here. .thanks for sharing!

JZK....

All those

who seek you

are testing you.

Those who embrace

you in friendship

open their hearts of purity

not possessing, not dominating

but cultivating the seed of mercy

and warmness of iman

unfolding of islam

in our short life journey !

Salaams Brother,

What a beautiful and positive post you have shared with us. It makes such a refreshing change to read this kind of message. I hope more read it and reply. It's worth it

As-salaam alaykum warahamatullah

Jazakallahu khayran AbuMujahid for the wonderful post.it is indeed refreshing according to sis.martha.Thanks for sharing it with us.Mash'Allah,it is a good read!

And jazakallahu also to abuzhuri for the complementary'Poem'.!

It is very true that our friends're like a mirror through which we see ourselves&through which people judge us.Even the English say"Show me your friend,I know who you are"."Birds of same feathers flock together"............etc.!Alliamdulillah ala'nimata l'Islam!

Islam is indeed a "perfect religion" for those who care to study &follow its teachings.

It is for the sake of making friends that some people have been influenced negatively&have regretted doing so, because the basis of their friendship was not'for the sake of Allah!!!

Asalamu Aleykum warah matulahi wa baraktuh,

brother Abu Mujahid, thank you for the message, I will remember your message  insha Allah (befriend for the sake of Allah) and be aware of bad friends, Asalamu aleykum warah matulahi wa barakatuh.

Man is liable to imitate and copy those whom he befriends.
If one's friends engage in virtuous deeds,
this would prompt him to imitate their good qualities.
Whereas, if one's friends indulge in bad practices,
then it is very likely for him to get accustomed with their bad characteristics
and eventually incorporate them in his behavior, knowingly or unknowingly!
Such is also true concerning one's religion and beliefs
as Allah's Messenger * is reported to have said,
'Man is on the religion of his companions,
so let one of you choose whom he befriends.'
[Ahmad, Abu Dawood and Tirmidhee]

This also goes with the hadith of the Prophet:

"Whoever imitates a people is one of them�..

So to my understanding, do what moslem should do and expected him to do and refrain from imitating attitude or tradition that is not supposed to be his tradition specially if it is against his deen.. and eventually incorporate them in his behavior, knowingly or unknowingly!...

Shukran for that post, brother Mujahid. May we learn more wisdom behind that hadith. It has many meaning that we may use as our guide in dealings with our personal and social life.

 A pre-requisit is Taqwa. Taqwa (Fear of Allah may be a near good translation) is essential for guidance (Verse 2:2). Without Taqwa, there will be no guidance and no real knowledge. Without knowledge, no sense to discern right from wrong, no sense to find who is a good person and who is a bad person.

 One has to be good to understand good things and keep away from bad things / persons. The Hadith described is very useful and needs to be followed to avoid a bad form of life.

 The company of good people makes us good and keeps us on the good line i.e. path of goodness. That strengthens us for goodness. It is necessary to avoid the company of bad persons to avoid bad habits. Man/woman is very much affected by habits. We all tend to do what we do daily. If we pray too much then we find ease / pleasure in prayers. If we play games or see films then we get into the habit of doing the same most of the time. I feel that even hunger is nothing. It may only be a habit because we are eating regularly.

 In the end, I may addthat, not only it is necessary to have good habits and be good followers of the Deen, it is necessary for all of us to guide others (muslims and non Muslims) very gently to the right path. There is no need to befriend any voilent non muslim. But it is also notnecessary to shun the meetings with the non muslims.

 One example of keeping company of the good people is given in another Hadith about some people remembering (Zikr) Allah in a company and discussing the religion. Allah said that He has forgiven all those who were there in that group. Then it was said that there was some one who was just passing by and sat down there in the group just to see what was going on. Allah said that He had forgiven him also even though he was not an active participant. (Something to those wordings).